Apparatus for washing fruits



mm F I I I I Ill March 14, 1933. R. R. KENNEDY APPARATUS FOR WASHING FRUITS Filed Nov. 27, 1928 d WHH Patented Mar. 14, 1933 runaway n. KENNEDY, or.PHILADELPHIA,gnminsanvninre, assreiion iuo..nnnoui'rs DAIRIES, 1110., OF PHILADELPHIA, .1;

APPARATUS FOR a i Application filed November 27, i I

My invention is designed to provide an improved method of and apparatus for washing and cleaning fruits, and more particularly berries, by immersion'thereof in a plurality of separate shallow streams of cleaning fluid during the flow of the fruit through a flume,

preferably containing cleats forming rifiles.

by which the rolling of the berries is facilitated; the fruit beingdrained of cleaning fluid and dirt accumulated therein between the immersions of the fruit in the respective streams without interfering with or delaying the travel of the fruit.

In practicing my method and using my apparatus for cleaning fruits and the like, I I

provide an inclined flume with water inlets and drains disposed at intervals along the length of the flume. The fruit is deposited in the flume from a hopper located at its elevated end and is washed along the flume'by streams or jets of fresh water supplied through water inlets. When water from one of the inlets has washed the fruit downwardly through a portion of the flume, the contaminated water passesofi through a series of rods or bars supported at their tops and forming a screened drain, the water carrying with it the dirt washed from the fruit. The fruit rolls by gravity over the screen to a lower sect-ion of the flume and is again flushed and carried along by a fresh stream of water admitted to the flume from another inlet, and is again drained as before. The fruit may be subjected to any desired number of separate washings in its travel and is ultimately discharged from the flume thoroughly cleaned and drained.

The characteristic features and advantages of my improvements will more fully appear I from the following description of a preferred embodiment of my improved apparatus and the accompanying drawing in illustration thereof. I

In the drawing, Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the preferred embodiment of my invention Fig. 2 is a top plan view thereof; and Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view through the end of the apparatus. i

As illustrated in the drawing, a flume 1 is formed from a series of reversely inclined len itudinii lfiehannel eai e awahaueiho per 2 at the elevated end of theatop: section;

thezparts heiirgimountedionra frame 3. The

renersely inclinedachannls arei'connectedi'by 5 iprertenablyiisupportedeat the top'isoasito avoid entanglement iof theabenrya'stemsiinrthe screenszformedabyzthe rods. 7 The bottomsa 01f fihe funnlsdischarge toe-branchestof ;a;.tdra in 5 I. v .1'. .1 'eWatereinlets carepositioned'zalon'g the flume" between nthe l drains iandlpreferably rat the elevatedJends'ioftthe respectiveareversely inclinedilong'itudinal hannelisections. --.The flumeisections preferably haveaspacedztransa verse acleats E15 'zfixed :to ithe Ebottomsfisher-reef whi'elirfacilitateithe turningadrcrollingsofathe. berries iby' :rthe :shallow streams througlr'ithei flume.sectionseandithenehysjostle 'theiberri-es'to promote ethe'gremoval :of sand therfirom. The=; .=lowermost ;screen. r l'ia-s an i extensiongfi. pnojeetingsbeyond theofname above the 9 o'f thelo wermostz:funnelzand:dischargesiinto anyrsuitable receptale 10. A splash board 11 may be inserted in the lowermost funnel to prevent splashing of the fruit through the extension 8. v

The berries or other fruit are fed from the hopper 2 into theflume 1 in a thin layer and are moveddownwardly by gravity and the flow of the stream of fluid admitted through the topmost water inlet. As the berries are rolled along, a dirt is washedtherefrom by the fiowing stream in the top channel section. The fluid drains through the first.screen 5 into the pipe 6'.

The fruit rolls' by gravity down the inclined surface of the screen to the next longitudinal channel section of the flume where until it is discharged in a clean condition.

into the receptacle 10. y

It will be obvious that the form of the flume may be modified, as, for instance, by

my hand this seventh making it spiral and itmay be provided with any desired number of fluid inlets and drains. It may also be covered or partially covered if so desired, or made of cylindrical cross sec-' tion.

Having -described my invention, I claim: 1. A fruit washer comprising a flume formed of a series of reversely inclined longi tudinal channel sections positioned laterally g in ofl'set relation','mean s for supplying water to the upper en'd of'each section, screens re- I spectively connecting the lower vend'only of t 1 one section with the upper endof'the next succeeding section and extending laterally, and r.

in inclined relation relatively to the sections connected thereby, and drains below the re-t Vspective screens, i

2. A fruit washer.-compr1s1ng a flume' formed of series of longitudinally inclined channel sections, means for supplying water vtothe upper end of each of said'sections to providese-parate shallow streams of cleaning fluid during the downward movement: by gravity of 7 fruit through :the respective sec'-. tions, each of said sections containing cleats. extending transversely tothellength thereof and forming riffles which facilitate theiturning orrolling of'fruit by gravity and bythe shallow streams flowing through the flume sections and thereby jostling the fruit to promote the removal ofsand therefrom, screens respectively connecting'the lower end of one section with the upper end of the next succeeding section, such screens permitting the draining of cleaning fluid a-ndidirt accu mulatedtherein-between the wettings of the fruit in the respective streams withoutint ers fering with or delaying the travel of thefru-it, and drains belowthe respective streams.-

' In testimony whereof I havehereunto set day of November 1928. a R..-R. KENNEDY; 

